Shingeki no Christmas
by imagination-is-my-world
Summary: It is almost Christmas and the Scouting Legion wants to prepare a great feast. It would be no problem, if there were no fragile Christmas bulbs or Mistletoe hanging everywhere ...
1. Prolog

Strictly saluting the young soldiers stood in line in front of their commander, who introduced them Hanji's well elaborated plan for the next week. Next to him there stood a frowning corporal who didn't know his job, too. Probably, as he feared, he constantly had to sweep seceded fir needles from the floor.

"As you know" Erwin began with a powerful voice banging through the whole corridor "there are five days until Christmas. I expect a full use of physical strength from everybody, preparing a perfect feast."

The answer was a consistent salute, fists pressing against the hearts.

"Mikasa and Jean, you will get a fir tree from the forest and collect mistletoes." Levi sighed, but Erwin continued unwaveringly: "Reiner and Berthold will arrange the outdoor lighting, Eren and Armin the interior decoration. Sasha and Connie will help Levi in the kitchen."

"Erwin, I can't cook" he interrupted sibilantly.

The commander turned around to his comrade and whispered: "I haven't finished talking."

"But I cannot cook!"

"Then your task will be washing the dishes." Full-throatedly he applied to the rest of the recruits giving orders. "Ymir and Christa will make garlands."

"Wait a minute" Ymir shouted grimly "Christa is capable of more than cutting crummy shreds of paper."

"No, it's okay. I like to do it" said the blonde angel next to her. "I have volunteered myself."

"No everything is clear" Erwin declared gleefully. „By the way Hanji will care for the Christmas music."

After knowing their jobs the recruits left the corridor, leaving the corporal and the commander behind.

"You did a great job again" Levi muttered sarcastically, but Erwin was blissfully unaware of his guilt.

"It was Hanji's plan, I only give the orders. Furthermore you like cleaning, there's no reason to complain."

"And apart from the chaos in our kitchen I bet that those brats will make bets about who will stand with me under mistletoe."


	2. The Tree

It was damn cold outside. Indeed it didn't snow, but frost covered bare bushes and white grass crunched under the boots of the two recruits. As they were told Mikasa and Jean tramped through the forest, inspecting every conifer that qualified as a potential Christmas tree.

"Hey Mikasa" Jean shouted grinning casually and posed under a beer birch, his finger stretched into the air where mistletoes dipped the tree into a bright green. "Look what's hanging above us."

Mikasa kept a straight face donating him attention for a short moment. "Then climb up the tree and pull it."

The soldier snorted angrily, but his smugly grin stayed in his face. "Then watch it!" Granted, his chat-up line was plain, but maybe madam would be impressed by his excellent technique in gathering green branches. Confidently he applied his maneuver gear and skimmed over a tree. With hands full of gorgeous mistletoes he smartly returned to the ground next to waiting Mikasa.

"I am deeply impressed, Jean. You let me carry a heavy ax while picking up the green stuff."

"Oh, come on" he moaned "You don't know how fricking cold the winter wind above the treetops is. I didn't want you to catch a cold."

She rolled her black eyes and both continued their search speechlessly, until they finally arrived at a pretty fir.

"We'll take this one" said Mikasa pointing her finger at the chosen tree, which Jean inspected thoroughly.

"Are you sure? It looks so small."

The girl insisted on her choice. "It's the right size. After all Corporal Shorty shall not drown in inferiority feelings, because even the stupid tree is taller than him."

Jean chuckled plastically. "Good joke, Mikasa."

"I am serious. Don't look like that and help me by holding the trunk. I want to log it."

No matter what he said, Jean couldn't please the arrogant Madam. "You picked it well" he murmured, holding the fir tree.

"I know" Mikasa answered quickly and applied the ax properly.

After a few minutes the tree felled and before sunset they returned to the HQ of the Scouting Legion. Eren was said to decorate the Christmas tree this evening.

"Kirschstein, get out with the branches and Ackerman, the tree, too!" Levi ordered as the teens wanted to carry the plants through the door. Before they incurred the corporal's wrath, Mikasa and Jean dropped on the ground outside.

"Sir, we have to carry the tree indoors" Mikasa replied.

"Use the back door. I don't want you to drag this fir through the floor and spread needles everywhere.

"Corporal, we are tired. Why can't we use the front entrance?" Jean whined, but Levi frowned.

"No, I have just cleaned the floor. Take in the back way."

Avoiding an attack with a swap they collected branches and tree to turn the corner. Eren was waiting on the other side.

"Hey guys, use the back door. Levi has cleaned the front entrance and the floor."

Mikasa ignored the second part of Eren's remark and passed by silently. "I don't care" she hissed.

Arriving in the common room they puzzled over how to fix the trunk in a stand, until Armin finally helped out by giving proper instructions how to set up a Christmas tree.

"Thanks goodness that Heichou isn't here" Eren murmured while taking a look at the green needles on the floor.

"What the fuck, Eren! Don't you turn into a second corporal" Jean, who pulled the tree into the right place, sighed.

"Shut up! I have to sweep the floor, because your job is done now."

Armin was cutting the mistletoes that he wanted to hang up in several rooms. "Eren, you can stay here and decorate the tree and I'll undertake everything else" Armin interrupted the approaching conflict and decided to separate both squabblers. "Jean, can you help me?"

Haughtily Jean turned around looking at the small twigs. "And how can we tie them up?"

"Here we go" The blond showed up a bundle of red ribbons. "Christa made them a few minutes ago. I suggest that we should hang mistletoes in every room."

As the boys left the common room Mikasa began to speak. No matter how to look at it, you could hear how jealous she was. "Eren, be careful where to go, please."

"Why? Don't worry; I won't spread needles through the house." Heedlessly he fished out fairy lights that he wound around the tree out of a box full of Christmas decoration.

"No, I'm talking about the mistletoes. I bet you don't want to be kissed by anybody."

Eren waved with his hand serenely as he threw the chain of lights over the branches. "Calm down. You are the one who should watch out. For horse face will take every chance in trying to kiss you shamelessly."

Mikasa hid her face under the red scarf as she blushed.


	3. The Kitchen

The kitchen turned into a battlefield under Corporal Levi's supervision who put several ingredients on the table as the countertop was cleaned properly. Painfully Levi braced himself for the mess caused by the two slobs, Sasha and Connie.

"Okay, have you ever baked?"

No reaction.

"Anything? Cake? Cookies?"

Still no reaction.

"Have you ever helped in the kitchen?"

Connie stretched his in the air. "At home I always cut out cookies."

Levi sighed as he waved them nearer to the countertop. "That's a good beginning. I let you get away with it."

"Don't we have to cook the Christmas roast?" asked Sasha who mentally sat on the dining table.

"When the need arises, but at first we have to bake these fucking cookies" Levi replied.

Surprisingly they worked very well and the pastry was mixed fast as Sasha floured the countertop and Connie armed himself with a rolling pin.

"Connie, look!" the girl giggled. "It looks like cocaine."

Her mate started to laugh immediately as he saw the flour raising dust on her dark colored blouse. "You look like a coking junkie."

"So you do!" Again her hand grabbed into the bag of flour and a white cloud built up in the air, covering both. It didn't take long, until cookie cutters flew through the air. The rolling pin exactly stopped before Levi's feet as he entered the kitchen. His eyebrows puckered and a shadow of desperation and anger evolved on his face.

"I just leave you alone for a second and the kitchen turns into a chaos. After all why is there a rolling pin on the floor?" When he picked it up Sasha knocked down the flour with a frightening gesture.

"We are sorry" they shouted both together.

"You are veritable disaster."

"Please don't forbid us to cut the cookies" Connie begged with clasped hands.

Levi mentally did a ten count and took a deep breath. "Tidy up the kitchen immediately" he said quietly, but tensely.


	4. Inner Decoration

Thanks goodness Levi was detained in the kitchen, because shreds of paper gathered under the big table in the common room where recruits made decoration. Especially Ymir didn't bother to throw away her trash while Christa made table decoration.

"We must tell Jean that we still need branches for Christmas garlands" the blonde angel explained.

Her friend just crossed her arms and glowered at the deco. In her dark hair fir needles became entangled mixed with glitter and colorful shreds. Indeed crafting was not her strong point. As beautiful Christa's works were – from garlands of paper to tree ornaments – as tacky Ymir's were.

"More green stuff? I guess I am allergic to it."

"Ymir, don't make such a fuss." Smilingly Christa showed a colored Christmas tree ball. "Isn't it nice?"

„Yeah, Eren will drop it like the other balls you made." Her voice was bored, even for Christa she could not act enthusiastically.

The mood was disturbed by Bertholdt and Reiner who stomped into the common room heavily loaded with fairy lights.

"Can you both bring some fir branches and cones from the forest? I haven't seen Jean, yet."

"No problem!" Reiner yelled proudly saluting.

Berthold confusingly looked at the fairy lights. "Shouldn't we-"

"When Christa wants us to go to the forest, we will go there. The lights can wait" the blond soldier interrupted his friend.

For uncertain reasons Ymir fumed in rage and her head changed its color into a deep, evil red. "That's not necessary. Christa and I get along without your help."

"Bertl, come on! We have to give the girls a hand."

"Forget it! I will go collecting stuff" an angry Ymir replied as she grabbed the sleeve of Reiner who wanted to drag Bertholdt outside by pulling the chain of lights.

Before the situation degenerated they set their eyes on an exhausted corporal who looked like someone who lost a war against cookies.

"Is everything alright?" Christa asked.

"Yeah, it is" he sighed by stretching the first word. "The first baking sheet is in the oven."

As Levi fished something stuffy with a red knot hanging on it out of a cupboard, the recruits were flabbergasted. After slamming the drawer he laid down on a big couch taking long knitting needles in both hands.

"What is it? Never seen someone knitting?" he asked irritated as he recognized the starring teens. "Go ahead and leave me alone. I need break."

"Yes, Corporal" they chorused.


End file.
